Getting to Know Tusko

About Tusko | Why breed asian elephants? | Tusko’s new home

See the Video News Release of Tusko's First Day On Exhibit!

About Tusko

Tusko is a 6.75-ton bull elephant that stands 10 feet tall and has a trunk nearly 7 feet long. Compared to the zoo’s captive-born Packy, Tusko stands several inches shorter (10’ vs. 10’ 4 ”) but weighs nearly 1,000 lbs. more. He appears stocky with a massive, muscular head.

Tusko was born somewhere in Southeast Asia, possibly Thailand, and has lived at zoos or private elephant facilities in California and Canada since the mid-1980s. Despite what his name suggests, Tusko does not have impressive long tusks that most people imagine when they think of elephants. He has a short left tusk and no right tusk.

Tusko arrived at the zoo already well trained and capable of responding to numerous commands, including those most useful for routine veterinary procedures. He has a healthy appetite and is very “food motivated” as described by his keepers. Keepers learn more about his personality as they work with him every day, and Senior Elephant Keeper April Yoder describes him as a relatively calm bull elephant.

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Why breeding Asian elephants is crucial

Tusko was loaned to the Oregon Zoo from an AZA-accredited private elephant facility in Perris, CA to sire a calf with Sunshine (nicknamed “Shine”). Statistically, if Shine doesn’t get pregnant by the time she turns 25, according to Deputy Director Mike Keele, the odds are against her becoming pregnant beyond that. Even though the Oregon Zoo had male elephants Packy and Rama prior to Tusko’s arrival, their genetic relatedness to the zoo’s females make breeding impossible.

An endangered species, Asian elephants are represented by an estimated 38,000–51,000 individuals living in fragmented populations in the wild. Agriculture, deforestation, and conflict with humans pose a constant threat to wild Asian elephants.

In response to the dwindling population of Asian elephants in the wild, the AZA, of which the Oregon Zoo is a member, strives to maintain a sustainable population of the endangered elephants in North America. Currently, birth rates are lower than necessary to do so. Tusko will contribute to the genetic diversity, and perhaps the eventual survival, of the Asian elephant population in North America.

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Tusko’s new home has many amenities

Tusko arrived at the Oregon Zoo on June 20 and remained in quarantine until being given a clean bill of health by the zoo’s elephant veterinarian, Dr. Mitch Finnegan. Tusko was introduced to different areas of the elephant barn section by section to allow him enough time to grow familiar with one area before introducing him to a new one. He made his debut to the Portland public on July 14.

Tusko’s new home at the Oregon Zoo elephant exhibit has many amenities. The zoo has a 1.5-acre space for the elephants, including a front sand yard. The back sand yard contains an 80,000 gallon swimming pool. (That’s big enough to hold 10 elephants!) The yards also offer “belly scratchers” and other scratching surfaces as well as shaded areas that are heated on cold days. The elephants can choose to be outside or inside.

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